What Was Left Behind
by MoonlightStarlights
Summary: Days seem to float by on repeat. Their minds float to home, to what they left behind. What they ran from. (Rating may go up as chapters progress)
1. Chapter 1

The morning that it all began seemed like any other day. The night before, the paladins had to go save another planet, another alien species and by the time they got back to the castle with Allura and Coran waiting, they were all ready to just pass out on their beds. Of course, none of them made it to their rooms and just passed out onto the couch in the meeting room instead. This often happened and neither Allura nor Coran really wanted to carry any of them to their individual rooms, so often times, the morning would be greeted with sore backs and likely someone's hand landing in someone's mouth. Mostly Lance's hand in Keith's mouth.

So, when they all woke up, none of them were quite surprised with their situation. Shiro groaned as he sat up, feeling his back crack loudly and painfully. He looked at the other paladins, who were all getting up slowly themselves, with Lance and Kith arguing as usual.

"Holy crap, Lance! Your hand is always in my mouth! Always! And it tastes like shit! Stop sleeping next to me!" Keith exclaimed, wiping his mouth.

"Well excuse me for passing out! Yes, my king, I'll just pass out somewhere else! I can totally control where I pass out!" Lance exclaimed back, wiping his hand on Keith's shirt, who didn't appreciate that very much, "You sir, are an asshole! A big asshole! A humongous asshole! The biggest of assholes!"

"Stop saying asshole, Pidge is in the room," Shiro scolded, making the girl grumble.

"I'm not five, I can take swearing. I've literally seen so much crap at this point, so shut up, space dad," Pidge replied with a large amount of sass.

Hunk sat up, a tired frown on his face, "We literally just woke up. Please stop fighting."

After a couple minutes of getting everyone off of each other and calming down, Lance leaned against the couch, glancing at his friends. Pidge was tinkering with some random stuff as usual, Hunk was reading some Altean books, Shiro appeared to be in deep thought and Keith was…being Keith. Lance looked away, not wanting his blush to get any redder. He looked out the window, seeing the deep blackness of space and he shivered unconsciously.

"Hey, guys?" he mumbled, not taking his eyes off the window.

"Uh, yeah?" Keith replied as the group looked up with him.

"Have you really thought about, you know, all this?" Lance asked, waving his arm around, gesturing around the room.

"What do you mean?" Hunk asked, shutting off the electronic book he was reading and sitting up straighter.

"I mean, doesn't it feel like the universe is so much…smaller? We can teleport to basically any part of the universe, we are aware of alien races, we are travelling in space, right now and we are basically the equivalent to the rebels during the revolutionary war," he explained, sighing, "And despite that, hasn't been really…repetitive? Like, every day is a routine."  
"Are you suggesting that our job is boring? You think that riding gigantic robot lions while fighting in a war against an empire is boring?" Pidge asked, her eyebrow raising.  
"No, I'm not, I'm just saying we've been doing the same tiring stuff. When it's calm day, we all just spend time in our own rooms, doing whatever and on battle days, we do this. Fight for our lives, likely having a near death experience and then we come in and collapse on the couch. Like today."

The room was quiet as the team thought about what Lance had said. The more they thought about it, the more they realized that he was right.

Keith was the first to speak, "So, you're right. What about it?"

Lance shrugged, resting back onto the couch, his body relaxing again, "I dunno, just a thought, I guess."  
"So you just dumped a question like that for no reason?" the other boy said sceptically, "Just 'oh hey, here's a very deep question because I'm a dick and I like making people think about this'!"

"My voice is not that high pitched, Keith!"  
"You sure about that?" Keith replied with a snarky smile, "Cause I swear that's what I hear every time you open your mouth."

Pidge let out a small sigh of relief, glad that the chaotic atmosphere had returned again. It was strange when they all grew quiet, when they questioned the big ones in life. She sighed as she looked out a window, out into the blackness of space. She knew Lance was right, it did feel so much smaller. The whole concept that she was in an alien castle and ship, was helping an alien princess from an extinct race defeat a huge empire by using flying, robot lions. It was both funny and weird when she thought about it. The more she sat there, with Lance and Keith arguing/flirting, Hunk humming and Shiro just kinda giving up on getting Lance and Keith to behave, the deeper her mind went into questions and reality checks.

The chaos was broken by Allura and Coran, the princess' face sure and excited. Her eyes were shining as her space mice followed behind. Shiro paused and just let a thought pass by in his head. She reminded him of a Disney princess.

"Paladins! Coran and I have an announcement to make!" she exclaimed, Lance groaning slightly.

"If this involves us having to retrieve something to win against Zarkon that will likely risk our lives, oh my god."  
"Uh, no, actually, I think this will be something all of you will appreciate. Now, this took a lot of talking between me and Coran, however the main call will from you all. So please think about your decision," Allura replied and Hunk frowned.  
"Uh, does that mean it's more dangerous than usual? Just spit it out or else I'll die!"  
Allura paused before glancing at Coran for some support. She looked back at the paladins, the air suddenly feeling a lot heavier. She took a deep breath and said, "We are going to Earth. Zarkon has been very inactive recently after the last battle we had. We've destroyed much of his best fleets, so it will require a lot of time to fix it all. The Galra empire doesn't have time to go after us at the moment. So, I thought since you all come from Earth, we could visit for a bit."  
The room was silent and the air became tense. Allura grew nervous from the silence. It felt so out-of-character for their castle. She glanced at Shiro, the man looking back with a thinking expression. He opened his mouth for a moment, likely to protest, saying that they needed to be vigilant and that they should take the opportunity to weaken Zarkon more, but he took one look at Lance, Pidge and Hunk and he immediately shut his mouth.

Keith was pretty unsure about going back to Earth. There wasn't really much for him to go back to. Sure, he missed small luxuries like pizza, video games and movies. He missed those a lot. But the way he and Shiro missed Earth was so different compared to Hunk, Pidge and Lance's. So, he said nothing as he just nodded in agreement with the idea.

"S-so, we can go back to Earth? Like, our Earth? Like, home?" Hunk repeated, his face shell-shocked as Allura nodded.

"We will be able to see our families…right?" Lance asked, shaking a bit at the very thought, though he wasn't sure whether it out of excitement or fear.

"Yes, that can happen," Allura replied, confirming all of it.

Pidge suddenly got up and stared at the ground as she said, "I don't think I could…see my mom again."  
Keith frowned, "And why not? She's your mom! Don't you miss her?"  
"No duh, I miss her!" Pidge retaliated and she looked down, "I just mean that…I can't see her again. Not until I bring my dad and Matt too."  
Shiro frowned and was about to get up when Lance actually got up first sat next to her. He hugged her gently, patting her back.

"C'mon Pidgeon, you know you want to see your mom. And your mom wants to see you, with or without them. You need to at least see her so she knows you're okay, okay?" he said in a quiet, mature and brotherly voice.

Pidge was shaking before hugging back, realizing that it was pointless to hide her feelings. Especially near Lance and Hunk. Hunk walked over and joined the group hug. Keith and Shiro thought it was best they let the trio have their moment.

A couple minutes later, the paladins looked at Allura, giving each other a nod. They wanted to go.

Coran got the message and exclaimed, "Excellent! Marvellous! Shall we set a course for the Milky way galaxy?"

Shiro raised a hand, "Hold on. We need to go over some things first."  
"What is there to go over? We set course and then we land on Earth. Simple," Lance replied and he sighed.

"No, not simple. We have been gone for a long time now, I don't think we could just land on a Earth with a huge ship, have two aliens with us and have five missing people appear back on Earth," Keith finished, making the team groan.

"Oh right, we have been missing. And Shiro is proclaimed dead," Pidge sighed and sarcastically said, "So no one ever question why the hell we're back and where we were!"  
"Language, Pidge," Shiro scolded.

"Fuck it."  
"Paladins!" Allura exclaimed, getting everyone's attention again, "Me and Coran have already planned for this. When we arrive, we will land on your Earth's moon. Before we get there, we will send a message to the Garrison and the government of the U.S, when you all are from, yes?" Everyone nodded, "We will reveal that we are friendly and that you all are alive. We are expecting some…publicity. However, we won't reveal more than we are visiting and that you all are here to protect them."  
"Can we say 'we come in peeeace'!?" Lance exclaimed, excited.

"Uh…no?"

Lance deflated but he still held his snarky smile.

"Alright, Coran, send the message and set the course to Earth's Moon!" Shiro said and Coran nodded.

"Right away! Allura, you are the princess, I believe you should make the message."  
"Oh, right, of course," she said and quickly left with him.

Lance let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, "So…we're really going home, huh?"  
"Yeah, we are," Keith said from behind, resting his hand on Lance's shoulder, smiling, sensing that the boy was shaking.

The Cuban boy looked at him, blushing slightly at the proximity but he allowed it and stretched, "Guess we better decide where we're going!"  
"Can we visit Hawaii?" Hunk asked, eyes sparkling, "Oh! And a Walmart!"

"Why a Walmart?"

"So, I can get some actual Earth ingredients! Don't you miss my tacos?"  
"Your tacos!?" Pidge exploded, hopping onto his back, "Hell yeah! Walmart, it is!"

"You can make tacos?" Keith asked and Lance laughed loudly.

"Poor boy! This guy has never lived if he's never tried Hunk's earth cooking!"

Shiro watched from the side, smiling as he watched the atmosphere lighten. As he stared, he felt some feeling in his chest. Pride? Perhaps.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The paladins sat in the control room, a tense and nervous air floated around as their eyes were all glued to the front, where Allura was standing. She had her fingers tapping away the screen in front of her while Coran was plugging in the coordinates.

Keith leaned against his chair, glancing over at Lance, who had been silent ever since they arrived into the control room. He watched as Lance kept bouncing his leg and often bit his bottom lip, tugging on the collar of shirt, like it was hot. Keith tried not to focus on the way Lance looked, both nervous and… He quickly shook his head, turning back to the front. He knew his gay thoughts would catch up to him, but not at that second.

Shiro stared off into the large expanse of space and for a second, he almost got up and panicked. It dawned on him. He was going home. He knew that he was, but only then did it really dawn to him. He's been in space for so long and the last he was on Earth wasn't the most pleasant thing in the world. But this time, he'd be able to do things he hasn't been able to do in years. And that, oddly enough, scared him. He's been so used to just being in high tension all the time, with the prospect of death almost never fazing him. But now, he'd be safe. Nothing to fear.

Allura must've his tense expression, because he felt a comforting hand on his shoulder and a beautiful face on his right.

"Shiro, are you alright?" Allura asked, her face worried and concerned.

"Oh! Uh, yeah, I am," Shiro replied, trying ignore the pace of his heart.

The woman frowned but nodded slowly, knowing better than to press matters. She went back to the pedestal and looked over the team, "I'll need time to recharge for a while, as the Milky Way galaxy is very far from here. Please wait a couple more dobashes."

Lance bit his lip harder, feeling a tang of metal on his tongue.

"Oh shit," he muttered and got up, heading out. Keith frowned, and followed him. As Lance walked down the halls, he paused as he looked the stars. He breathed in deeply, trying to calm himself down. But every step he took made more looming questions in his mind and he quickly grabbed a tissue. He sat down and sighed.

"Lance? You good, buddy?" Keith asked, walking in.

"Oh, yeah. I'm fine," Lance replied, hissing as he cleaned his bottom lip.

Keith headed towards him and leaned against the counter, frowning, "Honestly, I would've expected you to be, you know, more excited about this."  
"What were you thinking?" the other boy deadpanned.

"Just you know, you babbling about it and talking about all the places we would go."  
Lance sighed, shrugging, "I guess? I mean, I'm excited, don't get me wrong. I just…" he paused, trying to choose his words before giving up, "This makes me think."  
"That's new," Keith said with a signature smirk and Lance proceeded to whack his arm, "Ow! Real mature, Lance!"

"Well I was having a heart-to-heart with you, and then you just HAD to insult me!"  
"Hey, I was trying to lighten up the mood!"  
"The mood was just fine!"  
Keith paused, wanting to argue back, but his reasons seemed too embarrassing to say. So he just stuck out his tongue and Lance snickered.

"Aw, are you sticking your tongue out at me like a baby?" he mocked and Keith growled back, "Little Keith is growling like a kitty cat!"  
The boy angrily grabbed onto Lance's collar, his Galra ears coming up and flicking back and forth, "Shut up!"  
Lance was silent, staring up at his ears, his cheeks red, "Holy shit, you're cute with Galra ears…" he muttered quietly, watching as the ears twitched, "They're all purple and floppy…cute."  
Keith paused, trying to process Lance's dazed words, "D-did you just…?"

The other boy screeched and jumped away. "Oh, my god, I'm sorry!"

"Uh…no problem," Keith mumbled, his Galra ears going back. He tried to make light and said, "Heh…what are you, a furry?"  
Lance scoffed, the mood quickly going back to before, "Excuse you. You don't have a snout, now do you? You just look like a purple human! That's not a furry!"

Keith laughed and shook his head, and nudged his shoulder, "You feeling better now?"  
Lance paused before nodding, smiling, "Yeah, thanks for the help."  
Keith still really wanted to ask about his mood from earlier, but chose to hold back, not wanting to start some unnecessary tension on their vacation. But when he went to go back to the control room with Lance, he stopped when he noticed the boy not following.

"Lance? You coming?" he asked, frowning as Lance walked over quietly, "Bud? You good?"  
"I was thinking…about if I end up going back to Earth…will I even want to come back to fight?" Lance asked quietly, tapping his fingers nervously against the wall. He panicked at Keith's small silence as he tried to explain himself, "I mean, you know? We are so young, teens! Fighting aliens and fighting against an empire! And, if we're given a chance to go home, why wouldn't we?" he stopped and sighed, "I remember as a kid, I wanted nothing more than to adventure around, forever. But now…I just want to go home…"

Keith stared, unsure what to say. The thought of Lance not coming with them frightened him almost. The boy almost always got on his nerves, but the thought of him not being there anymore made him shiver. The idea of having a new paladin scared him. He walked over, resting his head against the wall, "I guess…you're not the only one. Hunk seems to be the same, not sure about Pidge."

"Yeah…"  
Keith sighed and said, "I miss Earth, but I guess not in the same way as you do. I don't really have a home on Earth. Just a shack in the middle of the desert, miles away from anyone. Left with so little money and having a job as a barista in a stupid coffee shop never seemed appealing to come home to. I would rather be here, actually doing something and mattering," he started to leave, before glancing at Lance quickly, "I get that you're thinking about it and…if you do stay, I wouldn't blame you. But…we need you more than you think."

He left, leaving Lance both dazed and solemn as he thought about his words. He headed straight into the control room, feeling the floor rumble as the engines strung to life. He quickly jumped into his seat, feeling Keith's eyes on him and he looked over, but the boy was staring out front. He frowned, feeling a small twinge of disappointment, but he ignored it.

"Paladins, are you ready?" Allura asked, looking around.

They all hummed in response as the castle roared to life and the wormhole opened up.

"To Earth!" Coran exclaimed as they zipped through.


End file.
